At every one of my book signings, it is inevitable that a random stranger will stalk my signing table as if they were on safari and I was a bird with some rare sort of plumage. They end up confessing their longtime dream of becoming a writer. I think they believe somewhere in the backs of their skulls that trying to peddle your art in a bookstore signing for several hours is glamorous. Don’t judge them . . . let them have their dreams.

Though there are some down sides to the whole writing career concept, there are some definite perks:

Top ten reasons you should be an author:

1. It’s one of the few jobs that can be done in your pajamas.

2. When your spouse comes homes and finds you lounging around on the couch with a book in your hand, you can always smile and say, “I’m studying my genre.”

3. No one gives you a second glance when you start talking to yourself because that’s just what crazy writers do. It’s expected.

4. You can write off parts of your vacations from your taxes as research as long as you use the locations in your writing (I think my next character needs to hike Machu Picchu).

5. It’s one of the few jobs (besides being a lawyer or politician) where you get paid to make things up.

6. If you’re in a foul mood you can blame it on your characters misbehaving, or you can blame it on a cruel Goodreads review. No fair jury would convict you.

7. Unlike reality, you have time to come up with smart remarks and clever comebacks so your characters can always sound brilliant even if you don’t.

8. You get to throw around words that make you sound important like, “My editor,” or, “My agent,” when you’re talking to people who were jerks to you in high school.

9. You can count the hours you spend messing around on Facebook as important marketing time.

10. If someone ticks you off, you can write them dead in your next book.

Writing has been a million shades of awesome for me, and I wouldn’t trade it for anything. I’ve met some of my best friends through writing and cannot imagine my life without them. And there is something truly humbling about reaching the end of your story and realizing that you’ve accomplished something great.

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I quit my job almost a year ago to focus on my writing, and I have to agree with you–there’s nothing else I’d rather do! Which sounds rather pathetic, but it happens to be true. 🙂 I am loving it, and hope it won’t have to end.

You’ve been tagged! Go to my blog (Lauren-ritz.blogspot.com) to find the details for the 7-7-7 challenge!

best book ever loved hazardous universe if i could rate this it would be five and a half stars. i loved it so much if i could celebrate my sons birthday he and i would invite you your the best author ever. : p

I just finished Cross My Heart. I am an avid reader and I have to say that I really enjoyed the ride. You have a really great sense of humor and your charactors are likable. Thanks for giving us great light entertainment without the trash.

We met briefly in 2010 at the Publishers Convention in Sandy. I published my first book with Granite and they have closed up. My second book didn’t pick up a publisher. Any suggestions on finding an agent or do you use an agent?

http://www.agentquery.com/ was a tremendous help to me in researching the sorts of agents I felt would fit with what I wrote. I do have an agent. I researched her on agentquery.com, found out what sorts of books she represented, and then submitted to her. It took several tries before we found something we could work on together, but I was pretty determined to have her as my agent because she’s amazing and she works hard and because she knows her business and best of all she is nice and makes me happy to communicate with. After reading several interviews with her and then talking to several people I knew who were represented by her, I knew I wanted to work with her. She came to a storymakers writing conference and I made sure to meet her and gain a personal connection. I would suggest researching the sorts of agents who rep the sorts of books you write. It will save you time in submitting to people who won’t be a good fit for you. When you find the ones you want to work with, query them. It might take some rejection letters and you might have to write a few books to find the one that sticks, but don’t give up. An agent is valuable and worth getting if you want to write in a bigger market. I believe an agent would be valuable in our local market as well, but there isn’t enough money to make it worth an agent’s time. My best advice to you is to NOT sign a contract without someone with greater insider legal knowledge than yourself looking over it first. An agent can do that for you. AND GOOD LUCK!!!!

Hi Julie, my wife has your book To Catch A Falling Star she purchased in Oak City. I was wondering if you could tell us what basic tools you would suggest to start writing with like Microsoft or some thing along those lines. Any suggestions on clubs to join tools to use would be greatly valued. Best Regards Dave Pettegrew

FREE to attend, must RSVP for a DSU parking permit – we would hate you to get a ticket!

Join the speakers for a box lunch on DSU campus! Fee: $15

Workshop Location: Dixie State University, Holland Bldg 4th floor

225 S 700 E, St George, UT 84770

Regardless of your writing experience level—from the published author to the uninitiated, never-before-published authors—this one-day writing workshop has something significant for every participant!

You will find a diversity of topics given by some of the best speakers in and around the State of Utah.

We have prepared the event in such a way that everyone will be able to attend speakers who will be most helpful and informative. To get everything into a one-day event, we have chosen to do break-out sessions and thank Dixie State University in helping make this the best full day of engaged learning about the writing and publishing journey.

In addition to the great list of speakers scheduled, it will also be a great event for everyone to network with fellow authors and industry leaders. Be sure to bring your personal business cards and book info!

Thank you for taking part in this one-day workshop and we look forward to spending a day full of inspiration, motivation and information with you!

Hi Dave. Wow, To Catch a Falling Star is a blast from the past. I actually bought my rights back from the publisher to get it out of print. For basic tools on writing, I use Microsoft Word. Back in the days of To Catch a Falling Star, I wrote it by hand in a spiral notebook. I actually wrote my first three books in a notebook. But now I use Microsoft Word for pretty much everything. Every now and again, I do work in InDesign, but there’s a huge learning curve on that one, so I don’t suggest it. MS Word is great. I don’t know of any clubs local to Oak City. My best advice is to read a ton of writing books for education. Some of my favorites can be found listed on this web site: http://writetodone.com/books-for-writers/

Dear Julie, I just finished “Eyes Like Mine” and love love loved it. That story could have easily been mine. I have been working on our family history, and have been reading about a fouth generation grandmother who joined the LDS Church after the death of her husbad. She left England with three sons and settled in Parowan, Utah. Her name is Elizabeth Bentley and one of those sons became my third great grand father. My full name is Debra Bentley Burr. I have just become one of your many fans. I just started “Cross My Heart” and am sure I will enjoy it just as much. Sincerly Deb from Ferron, Utah